Ink
by onbrokenfeet
Summary: It starts with a murder and ends with a bang! When Azula finds a frightened Ty Lee hiding in a cave, will love prevail? Or will Azula's flame keep her in the dark?


A/N : First chapter of my first Tyzula fic. Leave reviews and most importantly, enjoy!

She isn't hard to track, no matter how light on her feet she is. That buffoon at the fish market's directions were also almost somehow fairly decent, even if he did ramble. Why did she have to go in to the woods anyway? There were other perfectly good places to meditate that weren't full of Platypus Bears and Monkey Lions. The princess sighed. Footsteps, footsteps, fresher and fresher and of course they lead in to a dark cave. Of course Azula had to imagine Ty Lee's fragile little curves ripped from the rest of her body and left in a squishy red mass under the paws of some giant animal. Of course she had to smirk.

"Oh, Ty Lee!" she called and it echoed. It rang through the cave but only her own voice came to answer. "I know you're in there, dear. It's time to get a move on, the prey doesn't wait for it's predator."

She's completely calm, as always. She's analyzing her nails and deciding whether or not they need to be cut. She's blowing her bangs just a bit to the right. She lets out another sigh, knocking them back in to place.

"Ty Lee" she says it more sternly, her voice echoing again. "Lets get a move on."

And now she's not so calm. She's growing impatient, very impatient, annoyed. Her right foot slides forward and she looks like she's making a stand. But the only sound other than her own voice is the trees rustling around her. The wind is mocking her, she thinks. It's laughing at her failure.

She inhales sharply and her eyes narrow. Her smirk is long gone and her nails that she should probably cut are digging in to her palms now.

"Ty Lee!" she yells. "Lets - GO" and she doesn't just use loudly shouted emphasis. Her muscles clench and her impatience surges through her body. The energy builds and one of her fists flies forward. The mouth of the cave is full now as a large flame shoves away its darkness and scrapes its tongue with heat. Azula couldn't tell if she heard it, a sound. The flame stops and she listens. Birds have suddenly become a cloud above her, fleeing through the skies.

But that's not it, that's not the sound. The sound was familiar. It was - a scream. She knew it.

"Ow ow ow!" a voice echoes from the cave and Azula smirks again. Just as soon as she felt failure, she was victorious again.

She kept a small flame in her palm and made her way inside the cave. The small glow kept her aware what was right in front of her, and she didn't have far to go. Ty Lee was coming to meet her, her hands being shaken and lots of "owies" were being uttered.

"Oh, suck it up, Ty Lee. You've had worse" Azula says, her golden eyes roll and her hand rests on her hip. "Come on, now. We need to go."

"I don't want to" Ty Lee says, it's quiet, very quiet.

"Of course you do, come now" Azula says but Ty Lee shakes her head. Impatience again.

"I don't want to" Ty Lee says louder. The small flame gets closer to her face and Azula ignores her statement.

"Are you crying?" Azula asks, and she's almost concerned, almost.

"You burned my hands" Ty Lee says.

"You wouldn't answer me" Azula says. "It was shocking, I'll admit. You're usually smarter than that."

"You killed him" Ty Lee says. "You killed an innocent man."

"Who?" Azula asks, she laughs. "The cabbage merchant? He was only a peasant. Only a little worm asking to be drowned. I gave him what he deserved."

"He didn't do anything to you Azula!" Ty Lee cries.

"He didn't do anything for me either. Don't you understand, Ty Lee? No, I suppose you don't. You're too busy caring and being kind. They will walk all over you as though you're only the dirt in the street. You must keep them under your thumb, show them who they should be afraid of."

"Azula, I admire your strength and beauty but" she pauses and she looks at her burned hands. She sighs. "Nevermind" she says. Azula won't listen and she knows it.

"Good" Azula says. "Now, lets go. I have a tip on the avatar's trail and we need to get moving before sun down if we plan on catching up to him."

"Wait" Ty Lee says. Azula groans.

"What is it?" the princess asks.

"Come and see what I found?" Ty Lee asks. "Please?"

Azula waits to answer, because she doesn't want to, but something makes her feel obligated. She sighs again. "Fine, what is it?"

"You have to put the flame out" Ty Lee says. In the light of it, the dim flickering, the princess can see Ty Lee's eyes. She can see them shimmer and she looks so excited to share her…whatever it is.

"Blindly following someone in to a dark cave isn't a very bright idea" Azula says. "Oh look, I've made a clever joke" she says and she laughs. Ty Lee only looks confused, and maybe slightly hurt.

"Trust me?" Ty Lee asks. Azula doesn't trust anyone. Especially not anyone who wants to lead her in to a dark cave. But, she knows Ty Lee, and she has since they were kids. She knows her innocence and her inability to harm anything, even the smallest worm fly.

Without a word, the flame collapses in her hand and it's replaced by something else. Ty Lee locks their fingers together and guides Azula forward.

"It's gonna be great!" she says cheerfully.

"I'm sure" Azula says. Her hand doesn't pull back, but she keeps her pace quick. She won't be dragged along. Its getting darker, and darker, and suddenly. There was light.

"Look" Ty Lee says happily. "Aren't they beautiful?"

To be continued.


End file.
